NIBIB Policy For: PA-04-032 - Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards for Individual Predoctoral Fellows (F31)

Notice Number: NOT-EB-06-004

Key Dates
Release Date: January 11, 2006

Issued by
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), (http://www.nibib.nih.gov/)

The purpose of this notice is to clarify NIBIB policy for PA-04-032, RUTH L. KIRSCHSTEIN NATIONALRESEARCH SERVICE AWARDS FOR INDIVIDUAL PREDOCTORAL FELLOWS (F31) which was published in the NIH Guide on December 08, 2003. All other policies and regulations as stated in the program announcement apply.

Policy Statement

The NIBIB provides predoctoral training support for a limited number of outstanding doctoral candidates who have successfully completed their comprehensive examinations or the equivalent by the time of award and will be performing dissertation research and training. NIBIB anticipates making up to five new Ruth Kirschstein Predoctoral Fellow awards per year in this highly competitive program. The NIBIB will support applications from highly qualified applicants who are poised to pursue training in interdisciplinary research at the interface between the biomedical and the mathematical, physical, or engineering sciences. The doctoral degree pursued may be in any of these primary sciences and disciplines. In selecting a limited number of candidates for award, program balance will be a significant factor in selecting from among outstanding applicants.

The NIBIB is interested in fellowship applications where the science is focused on the discovery, development, and translation of new or existing technologies. NIBIB is also interested in technological studies that enable fundamental biomedical discoveries across a broad spectrum of biological processes, disorders, and diseases and have significant potential for direct medical application. The specific aims of an application for NIBIB, therefore, should involve a preponderance of technological effort. In most instances, technology development will not occur in a vacuum, but will have a target medical application. However, in some instances, a technology-based application is so closely aligned to a specific disease or organ system that assignment to another NIH Institute will better serve the applicant. Applicants are invited to look at the NIBIB Scientific Program Areas: http://www.nibib.nih.gov/publicPage.cfm?pageID=293

Applicants seeking NIBIB funding opportunities are strongly encouraged to contact the NIBIB program staff listed below and to provide a letter of intent which briefly describes the specific aims of the proposed project. Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information contained will allow NIBIB staff to evaluate the program relevance of the proposed research training and to provide feedback to the applicant. This feedback is intended to help the applicant in the decision to submit an application to NIBIB. Inquiries regarding this policy should be directed to:

Richard A. Baird, Ph.D.
Director
Division of Inter-Disciplinary Training
Natl Inst of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
National Institutes of Health, DHHS
Democracy Plaza II
6707 Democracy Boulevard, Suite 200
Bethesda, MD 20892-5477
(301) 496-7671 Office
(301) 480-1614 Fax
bairdri@mail.nih.gov
http://www.nibib.nih.gov